Ukrainians in Moldova file complaint against former president for endorsing Russia's war

An association of Ukrainians in Moldova filed a complaint against Igor Dodon, former president of Moldova, for his public speech, which could be interpreted as endorsing Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and a hope that Russia might invade Moldova.

Source: Newsmaker, a Moldovan publication, citing a statement by the head of the Association of Ukrainians in Moldova

Details: Mykhailo Bahas, Head of the Association of Ukrainians in Moldova, has shared a photo of the appeal to the Moldovan Prosecutor General’s Office with regard to Dodon’s speech in Gagauzia, an autonomous region of Moldova with strong pro-Russian sentiment among its residents. Dodon held a meeting with voters in support of a candidate for the regional government.

Dodon has allegedly said that "Moldova cannot survive without Russia" because it needs access to the Russian market and cheap energy resources, and stated: "I want to urge you to not give up, everything will be okay, we will make it. Our guys are already near!"

"As ethnic Ukrainians living in Moldova, we are deeply upset by these remarks by the former president Dodon. We think that Mr Dodon’s statement that ‘Our guys are already near’ openly talks about the Russian forces, which have ruthlessly invaded sovereign Ukraine. Mr Dodon is openly talking about supporting the war and calling on the Russian army to invade Moldova," Bahas’s statement reads.

The association is calling for opening criminal proceedings against Dodon for inciting ethnic hatred, high treason, supporting and inciting war, defaming the Moldovan leadership, and calling for separatism and extremism.

Bahas stated that there is video evidence that captured the former president’s speech. The video is publicly available.

Background: Igor Dodon is subject to several criminal proceedings in Moldova. He has been released from house arrest, but remains under the court’s oversight. He has recently expressed frustration with having not been allowed to leave Moldova for an Easter pilgrimage to Mount Athos.

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